The US Senate has approved legislation protecting the right to same-sex marriage across the country after concerns that it might be at risk of being overturned by the conservative majority of justices on the Supreme Court.
The bill on Tuesday passed the upper chamber of Congress by a vote of 61-36. It won bipartisan support as 12 Republicans joined Democrats to adopt the measure, which also enshrines recognition for interracial marriages, saying couples are protected from discrimination regardless of their “sex, race, ethnicity or national origin”.
The legislation now heads to the House of Representatives, where it is expected to be approved and sent to president Joe Biden’s desk for his signature.
“For millions of Americans, this legislation will safeguard the rights and protections to which LGBTQI+ and interracial couples and their children are entitled,” Biden said in a statement after the vote. “It will also ensure that, for generations to follow, LGBTQI+ youth will grow up knowing that they, too, can lead full, happy lives and build families of their own.”
The need for the legislation was sparked by the Supreme Court’s June decision overturning Roe vs Wade, which established the right to an abortion. That raised fears that the conservative justices on the high court might be inclined to strike down other precedents based on personal liberty and equal protection under the law.
Justice Clarence Thomas, a conservative appointed by George HW Bush and the longest-serving member of the court, has suggested the court should revisit other landmark rulings — including Obergefell vs Hodges, the 2015 case recognising same-sex marriage.
The legislation passed by the Senate would pre-empt any such decision by requiring every state to recognise same-sex marriages. “Today, the US Senate stood up to Justice Clarence Thomas’ radical, regressive vision for America,” said Dick Durbin, the Democratic chair of the Senate judiciary committee.
For the bill to advance in the Senate, it had to win the support of at least 10 Republicans, a process which took several months, and was delayed until after the midterm elections. But Republican senators including Rob Portman of Ohio, Thom Tillis of North Carolina and Susan Collins of Maine were able to rally enough members of their party for the legislation to clear all the hurdles in the upper chamber.
However, a similar push from the White House and Democrats to codify abortion rights into law has faced much stiffer resistance, and has not yet been able to move forward.
